Police patrol-wagon



' (No Model.) 2'Sheets-Sheet 1.

, J. BONFIELD.

POLICE PATROL WAGON. No. 379,266. PatentedMar. 13, 1888.

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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. BONFIELDQ POLIGE PATROL WAGON.

No. 379,266. I PatentedMar. 13, 1888.-

N. PETERS. Pfnlbuihoghpher, Wuhingbn. D.C.

UNITED STATES PATENT Orrrca.

JOHN BON FIELD, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

POLICE PATROL-WAGON.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 379,266, dated March 13, 1888.

Application filed December 29, 1886. Serial No. 222,906.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN BONFIELD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Police Patrol-Wagons, of which the following is a specification, to wit:

This invention relates to police patrol-wagons; and it consists in certain novel details of the construction and arrangement of the same, substantially as will be hereinafter more fully set forth and claimed.

In order to enableothers skilled in the art to which my invention pertains to make and use the same, I will now proceed to describe its construction and operation, referring to.

the accompanying drawings. in which- Figure l is a rear elevation of my vehicle with the stretcher in position for use. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section of the vehiclebody with the stretcher and canvas covering in use. Fig. 3 is aview of the covering; Fig. 4, a detail perspective view of one end of the stretcher; Fig. 5, a view of one of the removable spring'hangers; and Fig. 6 is a portion of one of the stretcherbars, showing the spring for holding the spreader in place.

a represents the body of one of the ordinary patrol-wagonsin use in many cities in the police department, and it is provided with longitudinal seats a along the sides, a drivers seat, 0?, and storage-space beneath the seats accessible by a small door, a all in the usual and well-known manner. These vehicles are often called to respond to accidents, where, for want of time or in the absence of a regular ambulance, they are used to convey persons who are sick or injured totheir homes or to the hospitals. These vehicles, being built with stiff springs to carry a large number of men, are very hard upon sick or injured persons, even with careful driving; and to provide means fortransporting such persons in an easier and better manner is the object of my invention. To this end I provide four or more stand ards, b, which I prefer to make of metal,having their upper ends bent over. and hooked,as at b, to engage and support thespiral springs b",each of which is upon its lower end provided with a large hook, b, to engage the stretcher. These standards b are reinovably set in guides or (No model.)

sockets a, secured to the faces of the longitudinal seats of the body, as in Figs. 1 and 2.

The stretcher is formed of a piece of canvas, d, of suitable sizeand shape, having its edges formed with wide hems or loops d, through which are passed the side bars, d of sufficient size and strength to extend the whole length of the canvas and rigidly support the weight of the person who may occupy it. These side bars are braced apart by aspreader, e, at each end, formed with eyes 6', which pass over the ends of the side bars and are prevented from being accidentally displaced by a shouldered spring, e secured to the side bar, as in Fig. 6. The canvas herns are cut away at proper intervals, as at 6 to give free passage to the hooks, as will be evident by reference to Fig. 2.

When a person is sick or injured, the stretcher, which is usually kept rolled up and stowed away beneath the seats, is taken out and the Spreaders slipped in position to form a rigid frame, in which the canvas body hangs in an easy loop to receive the body of the person who is then placed upon it. The standards I) are placed in their sockets and the stretcher suspended upon their hooks b and the patient is thus swung upon easy springs and a slight swaying motion is permitted, which gives a very easy carriage even over rough roads.

The vehicle has no top, and to protect the patient from the weather I provide a canvas cover, the main body g of which is of proper size and shape to cover the body of the wagon, and is provided with side flaps, g, to overlap the sides of the vehicle, and an end flap, g", at its foot to cover the rear end of the wagon, as will be at once understood by reference to Fig. 3. The head of this cover is secured to a roller or bar, it, which not only serves to roll the canvas upon when not in use, but is provided with hooks h to engage the drivers seat and stiffens and holds in place the covering when in use. This cover is at its forward end engaged with the drivers seat, and at its rear end rests upon the rail of the side seats, as in Fig. 2, with its flaps hanging down to cover the space between the main body of the cover and the body of the vehicle.

To prevent the cover from sagging down upon the patient, Iprovide apair of springconnections, 2', which are secured firmly at one end to the main body of the canvas and have their free ends provided with rings i, which are pulled taut over the corners of the vehicle and secured to hooks i on its rear end. This holds the canvas up, and it will be readily understood that when this is in place the patient is protected from rain or snow, while the flaps may at any time be thrown up to admit air but exclude the sun. This covering is folded or rolled up and placed under the seat when not in use, as before explained.

These improvements render the ordinary patrolwagon of great use in the safe and easy transportation of sick or injured persons and protect them from the effects of the weather.

I do not desire to confine myself to the particular construction herein shown in regard to the details of my invention, as they may be changed at willas, for instance, the suspension springs b may be formed in any other well-known manner suitable to this purpose and of any desired material; and instead of suspending the cover from the rail of the drivers seat I may provide a row of staples for that purpose; but the main idea of the device will not be changed.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and'desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- l. The combination, with the canvas stretcher-body d, formed with wide hems or loops (1, of the side bars, d provided with shouldered spring 6 and the spreaders 6, having eyes 6', substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination, with a vehicle-body, of a flexible covering for the same provided with hooks or equivalent means for attaching its forward end to the vehicle, and having springconnections at its rear end for preventing it from sagging, substantially as and for the pur pose set forth.

'8. A cover for vehicles, provided with the flaps g 9 the bar it at its front end, and the spring-connections i at its rear corners, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN BON FIELD.

\Vitnesses:

W. C. MOARTHUR, W. S. MoARTHUR. 

